Hello. This was in the attic of my house when I purchased it in 1998. It appears to be a vase lamp .It is porcelain. In pretty much original condition. The cord is two wire fabric covered. The plug is a small black mushroom cap style Arrow brand with fine line around the surface. I would say that one pull chain bulb socket is original and and one was replaced along the way.
one has a porcelain insulator inside and the other is plastic. The upper parts are brass and the base is some brass and some brass plated parts, it seems to be worn off some. There was no shade on it. It measures about 25.5 inches tall top of finial. the base is 6.75 inch dia. I am thinking it is of the twenties
or thirties era. The most interesting for me is the subject mater on the lamp. I have never seen another like it. Even in researching. I wounder who's home this lamp was in at that time when it was new. I still cannot decide if the picture is a lamination process or is painted, it does appear to have some brush strokes but not sure. Has anyone seen similar? or could say more about it . Thanks greatly

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Comments

Hunter, 2 years agoWow - amazing lamp. I would definitely guess pre-WWII because of the swastika banding around the base (this was used as a symbol of good fortune by many cultures before the Nazi's adopted it). I'm inclined to think it's between 1900-1920, but just a guess. The imagery is fascinating though: two blond/caucasian girls carrying a black baby.

Does the baby have a sort of ethnic hat on? And what do you think they are holding - fruit?

dasullywon, 2 years agoThis lamp is in the German Meissen KPM style, but it looks like it might be transfer printed, where the expensive antique varieties are all beautifully hand painted. This could have been a vase or urn that was converted into a lamp - which can be determined by disassembling the lamp and checking for a roughly drilled hole. That would also reveal any makers' marks (such as crossed swords, used by Meissen but widely copied/faked). To me it looks like German porcelain from the late 19th or early 20th century. If it is hand painted it is worth a few bucks. Try using a magnifying glass; if you see dots then it's transfer printed, brush strokes...you get the idea. I like the colors and shape. Very nice!

dasullywon, 2 years agoOh, and the figures look like "Meissen Cherubs" which were very popular at that time period (late 19th to early 20th century) which makes me more certain this lamp is German and about 100 years old. Thanks!

Luisa, 2 years agoReally cool piece of history, very thought provoking for me... Where do these things come from?!?! That plug looks older than anything I have seen, but dasullywon has a good idea there, with the piece having been converted.
Any visible signatures/initials on the art?

Luisa, 2 years agoAnd if it was something converted to a lamp, it must have been special enough to have custom made lamp pieces for it